New Year, New Apartment? Consider These Hidden Costs Of Moving

December 29th, 2011 by Crystal Beran| Posted in Apartment Guide, College Housing, Decorating, Moving, Moving Tips, Off Campus Apartments, Tips & Tricks | No Comments »

There’s no doubt about it: moving is expensive. How expensive? Well, it’s been said that you should carefully consider all the expenses you’ll incur: the boxes, moving van, cleaning supplies, first and last month’s rent, deposit, and a healthy chunk of spending cash set aside for things you didn’t need in your old apartment that you will need in your new one and then triple this figure to get a somewhat accurate picture of how much you’ll be spending to move into your new place. Here are some of the most overlooked expenses that can make the move much more costly than you thought it would be.

1. Days off Work

Moving takes a lot of time. You’ve got to pack up all of your things at the old place, cart them over to the new place and set them up so that you have some manner of livable space. Then you’ve got to go back to the old place and clean it up so that you don’t lose your entire deposit. Even if you’ve planned ahead like a genius, gotten your packing done early and timed your move so that you don’t have to take any days off at all, you’re going to be exhausted at the end of your move. You’ll have given up all your free time and you may need to take a mental health day once you’re all settled in. No matter what, you’ll be running yourself down and you’ll need some time to recuperate. Factor this into your moving expenses, especially if you work hourly or for tips.

2. Food

If you’re just moving across town you may be able to bring your food with you but chances are, at the end of a long day of moving, you won’t have much energy left over to cook yourself a meal. All those pizzas and take out dinners cost money—quite a bit more than homemade meals do. And don’t forget that if you’ve got friends helping you move that you’ll need to buy them dinner and drinks at the end of the move as well.

3. Things you Can’t Find

If you’ve got an entire apartment full of stuff you can bet that you packed something you need on the bottom of some unlabeled box. So unless you’re prepared to dig through all your things and make a mess out of your new apartment, there will probably be a few things that you’ll need to buy even though you know you have them around somewhere.

4. Things that Broke

Whether you move yourself or you hire professionals, there’s a slim chance at best that you’re things will all arrive in your new apartment unscathed. Be prepared to buy replacements for all the things that broke.

5. Transportation

A moving van may cost a couple hundred dollars but it means that you’ll only need to go from your old apartment to your new one once. If you’re moving in your car, be prepared to spend money on gas; lots of gas if you’re moving 20 or more miles away. Make sure that you carefully examine the cost of multiple car trips before you dismiss the moving van since driving your things over to your new place can end up costing you quite a bit more in the long run.

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